


Playing to Win

by theaveragebear



Category: Rhett and Link
Genre: Angst, Kissing, M/M, Tropetastic Tuesday
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-26
Updated: 2017-03-26
Packaged: 2018-10-11 04:25:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10454916
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theaveragebear/pseuds/theaveragebear
Summary: Rhett doesn't like losing.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This started out cute and sweet, but there is angst in my heart.

1997

Rhett is competitive; everyone knows he likes to win. But he also prides himself on his fierce individuality and subtle confidence. He doesn’t get pressured into things easily, it’s always his decision. Link, however, is stubborn and his sense of self is far less stable. In the face of a challenge, Rhett understands that Link will never back down, even if he knows he can’t win. 

So, when Rhett spins the bottle and its pointed end settles in Link’s direction, they have very different reactions. Rhett scoffs, shaking his head; Link’s eyes grow bright and focused, like he’s staring down the barrel of a gun. 

“No,” Rhett asserts himself to the circle, “we’re not doing that. I’m just gonna spin again.” His indignation is met with groans from the group. 

“You all made us do it!” His eyes flit between two girls whose names he’s already forgotten and he recalls their tentative liplock that had been cheered on by the crowd. 

“But Link and I have been friends forever, and it’s...different. There’s no way. We’re not gonna do it.” He glances over at his best friend and recognizes the mischievous look on his face. Link never shies from an opportunity to please a crowd, preferring entertainment value over his own comfort.

“C’mon, man...it’s no big deal. I brushed my teeth today.” As Link speaks, his smile grows wide, and before Rhett can respond he’s crawling across the circle. His eyes are playful and demanding, “C’mon, baby...just kiss me.”

Rhett exhales loudly as a retort, but Link catches it with his mouth. His hands are on either side of Rhett’s hips as he presses in for a brief moment, the contact between them dry and chaste. Rhett feels his heart thump loudly in his chest and he's about to reach up to grab the back of Link’s head -- a knee-jerk reaction, he assumes, to being kissed unexpectedly. But then Link is roaring back, cackling as he punches Rhett on the shoulder. 

“See! That was nothin’.” Link’s teasing laughter continues as he lands back in his empty spot across the room. 

Rhett notices that his breath feels shallow, and he feels angry, but he’s not sure why. He doesn’t want to give himself away, so he forces his face into a smile, rolls his eyes exaggeratedly and responds, “Yeah...nothin’.” 

In the truck on their way back to their dorm, Rhett grows quiet as he drives. He glances over and sees that Link has started to doze off, which causes the anger he felt earlier to flare up. He reaches out and slaps Link’s chest.

“Hey...what the hell was that, man?” 

“What are you talking about?” Link’s speech is slurred and sleepy. 

“I’m talking about that game...you...and me...you know!”

“Oh, why are we talking about that? And why are you so upset? It was just a game.” He words are casual, but his expression betrays his mischievous nature. 

“I’m not upset.” Rhett’s brows knit together as he hears the lie leave his mouth. 

“Okay, then let’s just forget about it. Can I go back to sleep?”

“It’s already forgotten...whatever.” 

He pulls into the parking spot, twists the key in the ignition, and the truck rumbles off. He sits in the quiet a moment before waking Link. He replays the events of the evening in his mind as his eyes scan his friend’s face. His chest grows tight with the realization that he’ll probably never be able to forget the sight of Link crawling toward him, or how he smelled up close, or the desire that the quick kiss woke in him. He knows he’s not allowed to feel all those things. He knows he can’t win this, so he takes the loss, resolving to never bring it up again. 

 

***

2017

Link hears his phone buzz on the counter and he reaches for it without hesitation. His anxiety has been at peak levels since dropping Lily off. She’s just turned 14 and he knows the party is supervised by someone’s parent, but that doesn’t quell the rising unease in the pit of his stomach. He answers the call in one ring. 

“Hey Dad...can you come get me?”

“Yeah, baby, of course...everything okay?”

“Oh, yeah..I’m just ready to come home, I think.” Link hears the catch in her voice and feels his heart race.

“Okay, I’ll be there in 10 minutes.” 

She’s waiting outside when he pulls up, sitting on the swing on the porch, kicking her legs. 

As she buckles in her seat belt, it takes everything in Link to remain calm and not flood her with questions about being picked up early from a party she had been so excited to attend. He pulls away from the house, choosing his first words carefully. “You wanna talk about it?”

“Ugh, Dad. Why are kids so...ridiculous?”

He laughs at her choice of words before responding, “That’s a good question. What ridiculous thing in particular were they doing tonight?”

“I don’t know if I should tell you. Can you promise you won’t call Michelle’s parents? They’ll know it was me who told.”

“Hmm, well, if it’s something really bad--”

“It’s not really bad, it’s just something I didn’t wanna do.”

“Oh, well, I’m glad you didn’t do something you didn’t want to. What was it, exactly?” Link braces himself for the worst.

“A few kids snuck into the basement and were playing Spin the Bottle. I dunno...I just don’t really want to kiss anyone. Especially not in front of everyone.” She makes a face of disgust and sighs, shaking her head.

Link almost bursts out laughing, but controls himself. He had been imagining a scene of sex and drugs, especially since he knew there were high schoolers at the party, and hearing the words “Spin the Bottle” fills him with relief. He’s also overflowing with pride, realizing that his daughter is nothing like him. At her age he had been impulsive and insecure. His self-esteem had been so intricately tied to what others thought of him that he never would have dared to back down from an invitation to a game like that. Her self-assuredness reminds him of someone, but he’s not sure who.

He reaches over and pats her head, “Well, good for you. I’m glad you called me.”

\--

At the office the next day, he relays his feeling of pride to Rhett as he tells the story. 

Rhett laughs, “Yeah, you should definitely be proud that she turned out to be nothing like you.”

“I know, right? How’d that happen?”

“Who knows.” Rhett’s eyes narrow as he chuckles, meeting Link’s across the room. His face quiets as a memory returns and he rolls it over in his head. He thinks for a minute, wondering if he should give voice to the thought that just came to him. He can’t help himself, though, and adds, “I don’t know if you should be so quick to dismiss Spin the Bottle as an innocent party game, though.”

“What? We used to play that game, it was harmless. I mean, there’s a million worse things they could be doing.” 

“I guess.” Rhett’s expression turns dark as he ponders Link’s open smile. “There was that one time, though.”

“You’ll have to be more specific, buddy. That one time what?”

Rhett pauses. He considers dropping it, turning the conversation back to where it started, but he’s suddenly overwhelmed by the loss he never recovered. 

“That one time we kissed.”

Link laughs, incredulous. “What?” His eyes widen when he remembers. “Oh, that? It was just a game, we were egged on by the group. It wasn’t a big deal.” Link looks at Rhett and sees his tight set jaw, his hand stroking his beard. He searches for reassurance, “Right?” 

Rhett runs a hand through his hair, dragging his nails across his scalp, and presses his forehead into his palms. His voice comes out low, “Yeah, it was a game. And you won.”

“What does that mean? It was, like, 20 years ago...how did I win? Was it a competition that I wasn’t aware of?”

Rhett stands and takes a big step forward, moving into Link’s space. “Of course it was a competition. And you won because you were right...It was nothing.” He steps again, his large gait crossing the room quickly. “But that wasn’t really a kiss, it was a show put on for a crowd. If it’s no big deal, if it means nothing, I dare you to do it again.”

Link’s eyes brighten, his face a mirror of his younger self, when challenges were met with bull-headed force. “Oh, you dare me? I’m not 20 anymore, you know--”

Rhett moves first this time, cupping Link’s jaw with his palm, long fingers reaching back to the nape of his neck. He fits his mouth over Link’s smirk and presses in softly. Link responds with a sharp intake of breath and moves his hand to Rhett’s low back. That’s all Rhett needs to push forward, crowding Link against the wall. He pulls on his hair to tilt his head back and they match each other in their ferocity, gnashing teeth and tongues. And then Link’s hand is at Rhett’s face, his thumb grazing Rhett’s cheekbone and it shifts again, slowing, becoming wet and deep. Link is gripping Rhett’s shirt, twisting its soft fibers in his fingers when Rhett pulls away. Dark green irises meet hazy blue ones and realization rips through them. 

Rhett frames Link’s face with his hands against the wall and bows his head. Link exhales and grips Rhett’s chin, rubbing his thumb in the soft hair. 

“I guess you win. What does that mean?”

Rhett drops his hands from around Link’s face and steps back. “Nothing, Link, it means nothing.”


End file.
